May 19, 2017

Friday Ephemera

Early bird. (h/t, Damian) // Hardcore bee porn. // Don’t stare, it’s what they do. // Star Trek: The Motion Picture – the re-scored, much shorter, 22 minute cut. // Meanwhile, in Korea. // Duck vacuuming. // She makes things with cardboard better than you do. // His carved wooden lion is way better than yours. // Another day at the office. // Night bus. // Because some people really want to analyse the complexity of pop lyrics. // Prosthetic ovaries. // One for the ladies. // Click farm. // Clouds and rock. // Get low-slung and groovy with Nuthin’ But An Alien. // “The woman has a weapon and appears to be mentally unstable.” // Back when TV logos were physical objects. // Terrarium lamps. // An athlete in action. // And finally, a modern twist on when hubris meets nemesis.

I found the recent ransomware eruption to be relatively a bit of a yawn . . . after all, the standard awareness among all actual I.T. professionals is that one never uses Microsoft when real software is available, and in the instances when something MS has to be put in, then all the patches and locked down settings are put in place, and such is still trusted about as far as one can throw the NSA building . . . .

While prolly apocryphal, there is a story of a meth cooker whose idea of confirming that he was still in good health and excellent running shape was to get to the poison gas generating stage of creating meth, where he would use a large bathub that was off somewhere outside, dump the chemicals in the bathtub to trigger that next phase, and then sprint like hell to outrun the rapidly expanding cloud of gas.

Back when a lot of titling was chroma-keyed Letraset on mounting board, the promo for a Clint Eastwood movie got more than a few prime time runs before someone noticed the lack of spacing between the L and the I.

As Laci states at the very beginning of her video, her red pilling has centered on “feminism and social justice warriors.” Most significantly, and why this video deserves particular attention, is that Laci has built her enormous online following in part by being “the pinnacle of a social justice warrior, my SJWness has been memified.” Her conversion or evolution or whatever you want to call it “has apparently really confused people, there have been thousands of tweets and emails of people freaking out, like what is going on.”

I have a few more quotes from the video that I think are particularly salient and that I will discuss further down, but first I want to take a moment to clarify what this essay is about. My intention is not to debate the merits or concerns of either side of these polarizing feminism/SJW arguments, but rather focus on the implications of Laci’s revelations. Specifically, in her video, she finds herself walking a very fine tightrope between appealing to the fan base she has spent so many years of hard work cultivating and the need to feel authentic and congruent with her current views, and then wonders what the future holds in store. It’s a very difficult transition, but one that would normally hold very little interest or value to a general reader, except that it perfectly illustrates the cultural tensions permeating through our society today.

Vast improvement. Can it be trimmed a bit more? About 20 minutes more?

In retrospect, the original is actually quite bizarre. The premise is an impending cosmic disaster of planet-shattering proportions, and yet the film is almost entirely devoid of momentum or any sense of urgency. Everything seems to happen at a glacial pace, presumably in an attempt to evoke some artistic high-mindedness. There’s what feels like half an hour of alternating between the passing scenery and innumerable reaction shots. “Kirk looks on, agape.” “Uhura looks on, agape.” “Kirk looks on, agape, again.” At times, it’s almost surreal.

Yes, the unhappy mix of portentousness and schlock writing was what bugged me about Prometheus.

I think Kermode nails it in his comment about the backstory that’s currently being mined, badly, as being essentially disappointing, cheapening, just stripping away the mystery but adding little to replace it. The implication of previous events – the first film’s unexplained ‘space jockey’ - is much more effective than a car crash of discontinuities, abandoned storylines and clunky exposition. In much the same way that I don’t think John Carpenter’s The Thing would be improved by spelling out, ham-fistedly, where the Thing came from or what it had been doing prior to its entombing in the ice.

I think Kermode nails it in his comment about the backstory that’s currently being mined, badly, as being essentially disappointing, cheapening, just stripping away the mystery but adding little to replace it.

Exactly, and that's what is worrying me about the forthcoming Blade Runner sequel and the Twin Peaks reboot.

The Owen Jones headline evinces a deft sleight of hand. Criticizing socialism generally with reference to Venezuela's current situation says nothing about democracy, though it's hard to fathom how things like attempting to dissolve the national legislature, constantly diddling the nation's constitution and tossing political opponents in prison are "democratic" in any meaningful sense.

As for the "wishful thinking," perhaps if we just add a few more eyes of newt, the magic will work this time.

This, I believe, was the very first thing I learned in college. My college roommate was a scandi descendant originally from Minnesota.

As for the video itself, I'm curious as to the methodology leading to the statistics the 77% of Nigerians, 34% of Norwegians, and 34% of Minneapolitans(?) have methane in their farts. Not questioning it, mind you. Just an awkward curiousity about how such things are done.

The WannaCry ransomware attack is an ongoing worldwide cyberattack by the WannaCry[a] ransomware cryptoworm, which targets computers running the Microsoft Windows operating system by encrypting data and demanding ransom payments in the Bitcoin cryptocurrency.[7]

What is FUD
www.cavcomp.demon.co.uk/halloween/fuddef.html
FUD sands for Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt.It is a ... Microsoft soon picked up the art of FUD from IBM, and throughout the 80's used FUD as a primary marketing tool, ...

which targets computers running the Microsoft Windows operating system

Which plays to the Willie Sutton line about why he robbed banks. Look, I agree in general regarding some of these OS war arguments, and more so to the unix/linux/wtf superiority over Windoze, however to say that "real IT professionals do" this, that, or the other thing is pushing the argument. Windows on the desktop is what it is because that is what people wanted and if Mac or wth the Linux desktop is/was (lost track of that handle years ago and too old/lazy to look it up now) the largest target, the vulnerabilities of those platforms would be exploited. Given the choice for server type deployments, the unix family(ies) win(s) hands down. But that's simply not the real world. Sometimes due to stupid decisions made elsewhere, usually by some bean counter, you get stuck with Windoze Server platforms. Real IT professionals just deal with it.

As for FUD specifically, Applebots love to play that game as well. MS won the desktop (originally) because they were far more willing to prostitute themselves to their customer base, thus they created the DLL hell, etc. world that they and the rest of us now suffer from. I could argue this ad infinitum from either side, to be honest. Real IT professionals and such.

Which plays to the Willie Sutton line about why he robbed banks. Look, I agree in general regarding some of these OS war arguments, and more so to the unix/linux/wtf superiority over Windoze,

Ayup!

however to say that "real IT professionals do" this, that, or the other thing is pushing the argument.

I have a easy suspicion that a few hundred thousand copies of the same memo have gone out recently;

Dear _)#*$&_)*#&$R*(_!!!

We hired you to be an actual I.T. professional, and now our systems don't work.

---(signed) Your former source of a paycheck.

Windows on the desktop is what it is because that is what people wanted and if Mac or wth the Linux desktop is/was (lost track of that handle years ago and too old/lazy to look it up now) the largest target, the vulnerabilities of those platforms would be exploited. Given the choice for server type deployments, the unix family(ies) win(s) hands down. But that's simply not the real world. Sometimes due to stupid decisions made elsewhere, usually by some bean counter, you get stuck with Windoze Server platforms. Real IT professionals just deal with it.

Such as a cousin of mine who reports that he runs his Unix systems remotely, and for those clients who insist on MS, he has Macs running a variety of virualization to do the MS stuff, where overall I rather expect that all such is bloody well patched and up to date---then again, my cousin is an actual I.T. Professional, been running his own ISP and working with clients for a good couple of decades . . .

As for FUD specifically, Applebots love to play that game as well. MS won the desktop (originally) because they were far more willing to prostitute themselves to their customer base, thus they created the DLL hell, etc. world that they and the rest of us now suffer from. I could argue this ad infinitum from either side, to be honest. Real IT professionals and such.

Assuming the pen names “Jamie Lindsay” and “Peter Boyle,” and writing for the fictitious “Southeast Independent Social Research Group,” we wrote an absurd paper loosely composed in the style of post-structuralist discursive gender theory. The paper was ridiculous by intention, essentially arguing that penises shouldn’t be thought of as male genital organs but as damaging social constructions. We made no attempt to find out what “post-structuralist discursive gender theory” actually means. We assumed that if we were merely clear in our moral implications that maleness is intrinsically bad and that the penis is somehow at the root of it, we could get the paper published in a respectable journal.

I sometimes wonder if firefighters or other suchlike have to deal with this kind of thing.

"Yeah, man, I made a fire in my fireplace at home once, and I totally put it out with my beer so you sooo don't know what you're talking about with horizontal ventilation opposite the hoseline attack route to reduce flashover and smoke particle ignition."

The implication of previous events – the first film’s unexplained ‘space jockey’ - is much more effective than a car crash of discontinuities, abandoned storylines and clunky exposition… The mystery, not knowing, is sort of the point.

Exactly. I really didn't even care for Aliens, the second one, while everyone else seemed to love it. I suspected at the time it was because I knew what to watch out for. Though a part of me wonders if it wasn't perhaps because I had taken my best friend's girlfriend on a date to see the first one, which added some extra angst...but I digress...

Agreed. It's interesting though, to ponder the difference between those sagas where backstories diminish the original versus those where they add to it. Think the origin of the One Ring discovered in The Hobbit.

The ransomware targeted MicroSoft Windows XP which is about as out-of-date as a Model A...

In the process of pretty much merely noting headlines going by, I did see some commentary on XP getting targeted, and yes, XP is now pretty much that leftover bit of infrastructure that some VP ordered to be set up and has yet to be replaced, etc. etc.

Chief among the revelations: more than 97 percent of infections hit computers running Windows 7, according to attacks seen by antivirus provider Kaspersky Lab. By contrast, infected Windows XP machines were practically non-existent, and those XP PCs that were compromised were likely manually infected by their owners for testing purposes. That's according to Costin Raiu, director of Kaspersky Lab's Global Research and Analysis Team, who spoke to Ars.

Aliens, in turn, is an absolutely classic war movie, which also got made during the depths of the nineteen empties, so there is all the pointed commentary and imagery regarding yuppies and other forms of underclass---You know, Burke, I don't know which species is worse. You don't see them fucking each other over for a goddamn percentage.

Alien 3 is a very direct discussion on death. You're all gonna die. The only question is how you check out. Do you want it on your feet? Or on your fuckin' knees... begging? I ain't much for begging! Nobody ever gave me nothing! So I say *fuck* that thing! Let's fight it!

Alien Resurrection is a variety of Prometheus Zero Point Five where someone's attempt at witty was to have an android be programmed to genuflect before a computer interface altar.

'A student group at the University of Guelph in Canada has apologized for including the Lou Reed song "Walk on the Wild Side" on a playlist at a campus event. Because, don't you know, the tune contains "transphobic lyrics."'

Next on the target list for songs to go down the memory hole, "Lola", for the same reasons, and "Pinball Wizard" for offending the deaf, dumb, and blind. I will denounce myself for not saying "differently abled".

What I mean about the first Alien though is that I don't think that another movie compares to it in its potential to convey that level of fear. The advertising consisted of that one commercial and the related poster with the one line "In space, no one can hear you scream". There was no way to describe the alien to anyone who hadn't seen the movie. You simply HAD to see the movie. Similar to Jaws where you don't see the shark itself until later in the film, except with Jaws everyone already knew what a shark looked like. It prolly helped being a teenager at the time and not a cynical 20something when the second film came out, but even back then I was not much of a fan of horror movies. The cliches and such bored me, though the first Halloween being a slight exception.

What's astounding is that when they are informed of the actual facts, i.e. historical context demonstrating that their interpretation is exactly opposite of what was originally intended, they nonetheless double down on the lunacy. It is the arrogance of it which maddening.

The arrogance is maddening, yes, and the ignorance, and the dogmatic refusal to entertain any other possibility. But worse, I think, is the readiness of others to apologise and defer to these joy-robbing little shits.

But worse, I think, is the readiness of others to apologise and defer to these joy-robbing little shits.

Absolutely, what are they gong to do if you tell them to go piss up a rope ? It is the same thing with the "demands" students make of administrations, the administrators have nothing to lose by saying no, it is not as if the students are really going to go to another school, and if they want to riot, arrest and throw their asses out, it is not as if they are irreplaceable.

From what I can make out, what gives offence to such people – or what gives them an excuse to feign being offended - is that there are things in the world which aren’t about them, and which don’t normally frame them as the centre of attention. This is particularly offensive, it seems, if the thing in question makes other people happy. A party costume, an old song, things of that sort.

I don't think the center of attention thing explains enough. Not at the breadth of the problem. While certainly a driver amongst the "leaders", for lack of a better word, this posturing resonates with many of the followers because they need something, anything to justify their existence. They get worthless degrees in nonsense and stupidity, tie themselves up in oceans of debt with no prospect for gainful employment, and thus they are stuck. It goes to the basic, brain-stem survival instinct. They've just totterred along taking the easiest path to a phony credential and have no other idea as to what to do with themselves. Then the fear kicks in and its trigglypuffs all the way down.

Or admitting you wasted tens of thousands of dollars and a good percentage of your life on "talents" no one has any use for and thus can't get/hold a job of sufficient value to feed, clothe, and house yourself. Yes, it's moral posturing and some hero wannabe but I see that as a surface issue that yes they want to camouflage. But deep down, what drives the extended exaggeration is fear coming from feelings of worthlessness, or as you say inadequacies.

As much as I laugh at these people though, my mockery is tempered by the understanding that they are suckers, victims of the con artists that have been running our educational system(s), and our psychological and other societal institutions, for decades. And we let them do it with our money. So who is truly the sucker here?

Isn't banning the song transphobic? Or homophobic? Or both? Lou Reed had a long relationship with "Rachel" who he dedicated the album Coney Island Baby and who was a pre op transsexual. (They can be seen together on the cover of the record "Walk in the Wild Side the Best of Lou Reed") Even in death he is transgressive to the squares and the prudes.

Published in Hypatia, A Journal of Feminist Philosophy, along with such classics as "Coming to Understand: Orgasm and the Epistemology of Ignorance", and "From vaginal exception to exceptional vagina: The biopolitics of female genital cosmetic surgery".

However, speaking of ignorance, these learned scholars appear not to know the difference between a vagina and external genitalia, as the former can really only be viewed with a speculum or endoscope. OTOH, perhaps I should just report for regrooving for only understanding the cis-patriarchal anatomy, and not feminist anatomy.

Aka - Star Trek: Where Nomad Has Gone Before (after the season 2 episode, "The Changeling" which essentially had the same plot with a space probe called "Nomad" which had acquired advanced technology from another civilisation).

I love the original Jerry Goldsmith score (not so much the bombastic theme tune, but the ethereal music for the cloud scenes), but the Daft Punk music worked surprisingly well. The edit added a sense of urgency missing from the interminable original; not a complete failure but a film which wasn't nearly as philosophical as it wanted to be.